Apparatus for applying covers to balls



' Nov. 29, 1949 F. 'r. ROBERTS 2,489,387

APPARATUS FOR APPLYING COVERS T0 BALLS Original Filed May 3, 1945 IN V EN TOR. 55950 T Foam r5 BY Patented Nov. 29, 1949 UNITED STATES FATENT OFFICE Application June 7, 1946, Serial 'No. 675,053 which is a division of application Serial No. 591,787, May 3, 1945. Divided and this application April 30, 1948, Serial No. 24,222

8 Claims.

This application is a division of my copending application Ser. No. 675,053, filed June '7, 1946, which latter .is .a division of my .copending application Ser. No. 591,787, filed May 3, 1945, for a Covered ball and method and apparatus for applying the cover.

The present application relates to the apparatus, shown in such parent application, for mechanically applying the covers to balls in an efiicient manner to produce a ball in which the cover is very firmly and uniformly and accurately seated on the ball center.

Heretofore it has been the custom to apply manually two B-shaped covers cemented to the exterior of :a previously formed and inflated ball, the edges of the two cover members being manually pressed onto the ball center. Objects of my invention are to reduce the manual operations to 'a minimum; to cover the ball more accurately uniformly and firmly, and at less expense.

Most tennis balls are first made as a completed rubber ball, molded and inflated to the correct size for covering, and then the covers of inelton are attached by hand, the covers being first cut in the conventional figure 8 pieces. These figure 3 covers are usually died out of a layer of melton, to one face of which cement has been previously applied, and are then stacked together and the edges cemented while in the stack. They are then separated and. attached to the surface of the ball by hand. Great skill is required to get the covers on straight and without wrinkles, and the edges are cemented together with the cement previously put on the pieces while they were stacked together.

Due to the fact that the ball, covered as above described, is then given a vulcanization to set the cement, there is a shrinkage of the melton cover, so an allowance is made for this shrinkage, the cover being cut with a fullness, and this adds to the difiiculty of properly applying the covers and joining their edges.

In the drawings, Fig. 1 is a plan of an apparatus in accordance with this invention for securing covers on a ball; Fig. 2 is a sectional side elevation of such apparatus, showing the ball in place and showing also a pressure tool for forcing the covers against the ball, the tool being ind cated in two successive pos tions; Fig. 3 is a side elevathat side and becomes substantially dry in place but is able to effect .a ready adherence of the cover to a ball covered with cement of a different character. Out of the cement covered layer I cut, with :a die, conventional figure '8 pieces. I then stack the figure 8 pieces and apply air curing cement to their out edges in the usual manner.

I take an inflated hollow rubber ball 13, Fig. 2, which in the case of a standard tennis ball contains internal pressure of approximately 42 lbs. per square inch. This inflation may be eliected by closing the ball in an atmosphere of compressed or by closing it with suitable chemica ls in the interior which react to produce a pressure, or by puncturing the completed ball with a hypodermic needle and injecting compressed fluid, all these practices being common in the art.

I now attach two cover members A, at right angles to each other, to the inflated ball center, but instead of accomplishing this by hand, as is the presentcustom, I perform the attaching operation by the apparatus of this invention, which I will now describe.

shown in the drawing, a metal plate i having a figure eight cavity 3 of the correct size of the cover is fixed on a table and by an upstanding portion h'ingedly carries a cOa-cting plate 2 of the same size and having a similar cavity but positioned at exactly right angles to the cavity 3. Accord ngly, when a cover A is placed in the cavity in plate with the cemented side up and another cover A is placed in cavity 4 of plate 2, cement side down, and a ball B cemented all over its surface is accurately positioned between the two covers, the covers will touch only two opposite poles of the ball.

Suitable wheels may now be rolled upwardly against the cover A in the cavity 3 and downwardly against the cover A in the cavity 4 thus causing their central zones to adhere to the ball. Two bowed arms m are pivoted to a handle member l and at their lower ends pressed outwardly by compression springs l2 between the arms and. the handle member. The springs are shown as surrounding a floating bar [3 extending loosely through the handle member and arms and having a pin and slot connection l4, it with each arm. Each of the bowed arms carries a wheel it. The wheels are thus spring-pressed toward each other in a condition to be conveniently rolled about the ball.

By providing a slot or slots '5 in the plate 5 and a slot or slots 6 at right angles thereto in the plate 2, I provide ready means for the insertion 3 of the arms carrying the wheels. The width of these slots may be only slightly larger than the width of the arms and thus form a convenient guide for the arms.

The ball is accurately positioned in the cavity 3 of plate l by the four upright bars 8. These bars also keep the edges of the cemented cover from touching the ball as the wheels press the central portion of the covers against the ball surface.

The particular apparatus shown in the drawing and above described is efiective for securing the two B-shaped cover members in proper relative position on the ball. Subsequent operations not herein shown smooth down the marginal portions of the positioned and attached covers. This may be effected by hand or :by suitable apparatus, one form of which is illustrated in my parent application Ser. No. 675,053 above mentioned.

I claim:

1. An apparatus for applying covers to balls comprising means for holding two 8-shaped covers at right angles to each other and spaced apart sufiiciently for a ball to be placed between them, wheels adapted to act against the covers 1' with a rolling action and means for pressing said wheels toward each other to force regions of the covers against the ball.

2. An apparatus for applying covers to balls comprising a pair of plates each having means for holding an 8-shaped cover on its face, the cover on one plate being at right angles to that on the other, said plates being adapted to engage diametrically opposite regions of a ball, a pair of wheels and spring means pressing them toward each other, said wheels being adapted to act against the covers with a rolling action and force regions thereof against the ball.

3. An apparatus for preliminarily securing 8- shaped covers to a ball comprising a pair of plates each having means for positioning a cover, the cover on one plate being at right angles to the cover on the other, and a device having a pair of spring held arms each carrying a roller, said device being adapted to be inserted through the plate to roll a narrow region of the cover down tightly on the ball.

4. An apparatus "for applying 8-shaped covers to balls comprising a pair of .plates each having means for positioning an 8-shaped cover on the from the axes of the covers, and means guided by said plates adapted to act on the covers to force them against the ball.

5. An apparatus for applying B-shaped covers to balls comprising a pair of plates each having means for positioning an B-sha-ped cover on the face of the plate, the covers on the two plates being at right angles to each other, said plates being adapted to be positioned on diametrically opposite sides of a hall, each plate being slotted lengthwise of the cover and a pair of arms adapted to the inserted through the openings thus provided, each arm carrying a roller adapted to bear against the adjacent cover.

6. An apparatus for applying covers to balls comprising a pair of plates each having means for holding an 8-shaped cover on its face, the cover on one plate being at right angles to that on the other, said plates being adapted to engage diametrically opposite regions of a hall, a .pair of wheels and spring means pressing them toward each other, said wheels being adapted to act against the covers with a rolling action and force them from the plates and force regions of the covers against the ball.

7. An apparatus for applying fl-shaped covers .to balls comprising :a pair of plates each having means for positioning an 8-shaped cover on the face of the plate, the covers on the two plates being at right angles to each other, said plates being adapted to be positioned on diametrically opposite sides of a ball, there being openings through the plates, and arms carrying rollers adapted to be passed through the openings and definitely guided to act on the covers to force them against the ball.

8. An apparatus for securing a cover member to a ball comprising a pair of arms, each carrying a roller, means for pressing the arms toward each other, means for holding a ball in engagement with an intermediate portion of the cover member, and means for guiding the arms to cause the rollers to move such cover member from its support and press it against opposite regions of the :ball.

FRED T. ROBERTS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,272,090 Larabee Feb. 3, 1942 2,279,921 Humphrey Apr. 14, 1942 2,300,096 Bowers Oct. 27, 1942 

